After their week off, the top two divisions of the South London & Kent Pool Alliance are back in action, and Division One is proving to be extremely competitive.

Bellegrove Flyers were top of the table and the only unbeaten team after two matches, and this week they travelled to Pool Runnings sitting in seventh.

Jason Brunton was unbeaten on six out of six for the season, but Nirman Bogati inflicted his first defeat to put Pool Runnings, 1-0 up.

Bobby Rogers took out a good finish to level the score, before Joshua Joshua and Darren Mills gave Pool Runnings the set.

Steve Pearce won frame five to pull Flyers back to within a frame at, 3-2.

Pool Runnings won the first three frames of the second set to extend their lead, but Rogers stopped the rot with another good clearance making the score, 6-3.

Frame ten was a repeat of the fifth frame, as Gregg Thomas played Steve Pearce and with a good run of the ball Thomas gained revenge to put Pool Runnings on the hill at, 7-3.

To keep up their unbeaten run, Flyers needed all the frames in set three however, Joshua won his third frame of the night to give Pool Runnings the match.

Bogati played particularly well all night and won his third frame, then Rogers made it a hat-trick of hat-tricks to put up Flyers only real resistance against Pool Runnings.

It was, 10-4 going into the last frame and for the third time in the match Thomas played Pearce, and Pearce was looking favourite when he had ball in hand, but he landed awkwardly on his second ball, gifting Thomas an easy finish giving Pool Runnings an, 11-4 victory, to stop Flyers unbeaten run.

Cue-Ologists were sitting in second and hosted New Eltham New Boys this week, and the away side missed too many opportunities, which Cue-Ologists capitalised on for a, 9-6 triumph.

The score line doesn’t reflect how close the game was, and the shining light for New Boys was Antony Su’s break and dish in the last frame.

Eltham Evolution hadn’t had a great start to the season, sitting in ninth with one win and a loss, but their season may be turning around after beating The Con Men, 11-4 to rise to fourth.

There were mixed fortunes for the other two Eltham Terrace teams in the division, with Rack Pack narrowly beating Academicals, 8-7 and Tigers losing, 9-6 to Nolans.

This division is proving to be incredibly tight, with the top six teams all having the same, won two lost one record, and the top three, Flyers, Pool Runnings and Cue-ologists having 25 points and only six points separating top from bottom.

In the Premier Division, Falconwood Club were the surprise package, in second place after two matches and this week they played hosts to Sundridge Park Pocketeers in eighth.

Steve Covington played a good attacking frame to give Pocketeers the opening frame, but Falconwood fought back winning the next three frames including a delightful break and dish by George Covington.

Kevin Dempsey won the fifth frame for Pocketeers to pull the score back to, 3-2.

Steve Covington performed a dish from a dry break to put Pocketeers one up in the set and level the match overall.

The next four frames were shared, leaving the score at five all by the end of the second set.

Akar Necati nudged Falconwood into the lead with his second frame win out of two played, but Darren Cotterill won the next frame to tie the match again.

Steve Covington won his hat-trick frame to put his team on the hill, before Dempsey won the match and Tommy Bowden took the final frame for a, 9-6 triumph.

This result put Pocketeers on the same points as their opponents, with Pickwick also on 23 points after this week’s match against top of the table Sharks.

Sharks were unbeaten after two matches however, Pickwick were, 7-4 up after Paul Slater performed a break and dish in frame nine and Paul Cobbold a reverse dish in the next frame.  

However, Pickwick couldn’t get over the line, as Sharks battled back to win the last four frames for an, 8-7 victory to uphold their unbeaten run.

Despite the loss, Pickwick’s Andre Cox won all three of his frames.

New Eltham New Stars are the surprise package, remaining unbeaten after this week’s, 10-5 victory over Royal Oak.

The match began with a well taken reverse dish from James Martin to get New Stars off to a good start, and whilst the next few frames were nip and tuck, they all went the same way to give New Stars a, 4-0 lead. 

Phil Tworek prevented the set whitewash to get a frame on the board for the Oak however, that didn't stop the tide with the score advancing to 6-1.

 Oak captain Paul Clements took out a reverse dish, but that was the only frame they won in the second set. 

The match was already won with a set to go with the score standing at, 8-2 and when it went to, 9-2 it looked like a drubbing was on the cards. 

However, the Oak showed some spirit to get something out of the match, and Paul Williams, Joe Hill and Clements, with his second frame of the night, pulled the score back to a more respectable 9-5. 

Luke Terry then completed the third reverse dish of the night to win the final frame for New Stars.

Although New Stars are the only other unbeaten team in the division, they just miss out on second place by one point after Rugrats huge victory over Foots Cray Bears.

Although there were five places between these teams, there was only three points separating them and this game started closely, going to a first set deciding frame, which Dylan Suggars won to give Rugrats a, 3-2 lead.

However, the second set was a much different story, with Rugrats whitewashing it, making it six on the spin to give them the match before the start of the last set.

Gary Heath stopped the rot for Bears, with his second win out of three frames played, but that would be their last frame, as Rugrats took the last four frames for a, 12-3 triumph.

Despite the large margin of victory, Rugrats only had two unbeaten players, Steve Gibson and Suggars, who both won all three of their frames.

This result leaves Bears bottom of the table without a win and three points behind Royal Oak.

Two of the top sides, Bellegrove and Hotshots were sitting in sixth and seventh on fourteen points when they faced each other this week.

The first set was a case of who made the most mistakes and surprisingly it was Hotshots making the errors and Bellegrove took advantage to win all five frames.

Hotshots couldn’t continue to make this many mistakes and so it proved, winning nine of the next ten frames, with some amazing pool which included two break dishes and two dishes from a dry break.

Only a lovely clearance from Adam Coppen in frame eight prevented each set from being won by a whitewash.

Bellegrove fed off the scraps in the last two sets but couldn’t put away the minimal chances that came their way, ending up on the wrong side of a, 9-6 score line.

This is going to be another competitive division, with four points separating the top seven teams.

Bexleyheath Raiders are having a fantastic start to the season, unbeaten at the top of the table and this week they went to the struggling Hurricanes Reborn.

Playing the top of the table wasn’t the week to have a bare five due to illness, but Hurricanes started well, with Michelle Brown coming off her sick bed to win the first frame.

The rest of the set swung one way then the other, with Raiders edging it, 3-2.

The second set was just as close, but this time Hurricanes took it, 3-2 which included a 7-baller from Arif Salih, to tie the match at five frames all.

Charles French pushed Hurricanes into the lead, but Raiders battled back to level the score.

Salih capitalised on his opponent not finishing him off to achieve a hat-trick, then Kevin England missed a chance to secure the win and Jeff Schofield potted a pressure black to send the match into a final frame decider.

Brown played Tony Hodsdon and fittingly the frame went down to the black, which Brown narrowly missed, allowing Hodsdon to take out a nervy pot for the, 8-7 victory.

Considering the difference between the teams in the table and Hurricanes; depleted squad, this was a great result for them.

Sixth played fourth with just three points between them, as Sundridge Park Working Men’s Club hosted Farmhouse and it was the bottom team who had much the better start, taking the first set, 4-1.

The second set was much closer, with the first two frames being shared, before Slok Patel and Dave Sparey won the next two frames to put Sundridge Park on the hill.

Farmhouse’s Lacey Denahy took frame ten to make the score, 7-3 going into the final set.

Sam Kinsville and John Denahy made it three in a row for Farmhouse to bring the score back to, 7-5 however, Andrew Slater won the match for Sundridge Park and Sparey made it, 9-5 with his hat-trick frame.

After winning the last frame, Lacey Denahy remained unbeaten on two out of two to make the final score, 9-6.

This was a superb result for Sundridge Park, as it catapulted them to third in the table, whilst Farmhouse are two points ahead of Hurricanes at the bottom.

Third played second, as Blackheath Sports Club hosted Bell Ya Later with only one point between them and the first set was just as close, swinging to and fro until Joe Kane won the set deciding frame to give the home side a, 3-2 lead.

They went on to win the first four frames of the second set, giving them five in a row to put them on the hill.

Reece Stewart won his second frame of the night to prevent the set whitewash.

Alan Dolan won frame eleven to give Blackheath the win, before Reece Stewart recorded his hat-trick and Angie Hobbs brought the score back to, 8-5.

The last two frames went to Blackheath for a, 10-5 triumph.

Blackheath had two unbeaten players, with Neil Shelton and Glen Ward both winning two frames.

Blackheath replaced Bell Ya Later in second, with Bell Ya Later dropping to fourth, four points behind.

Raiders are the only unbeaten team in the division however, Blackheath are on the same points and there are only six points separating all six teams.

Bellegrove Newbies are the only unbeaten team in Division Three and that continued this week after a huge victory over second placed Average Joes.

Newbies had a fantastic start whitewashing the first two sets to have the match won before the end of the second set.

Sean Moynihan got Average Joes first frame on the board in the twelfth and that would be their only frame, with Newbies running out, 14-1 winners.

It was a brilliant team performance, especially from this season’s new additions, with Alison Cable, Josh Gardner-Nutley and 16-year-old Lewis Garland all recording hat-tricks and Nick Conquest winning both of his frames.

Average Joes drop to fourth with Angerstein replacing them in second after their, 11-4 triumph over Large Lakhars.

White Hart also leapfrog Average Joes into third place, after their narrow, 8-7 victory over Plough & Harrow.

Newbies massive victory has given them a 16-point lead at the top of the table, with the rest of the teams separated by six points.

For more information on the SLKPA including league tables visit the website at www.slkpa.com or contact the Secretary, Paul Gafa on 07443 456662 or secretary@slkpa.com with any queries.

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